It's the first Monday of a new month, and that means Google's Pixels are getting their regular security patches. Downloads for both full factory images and sideloadable OTAs are up and available while we wait for the update to roll out via the more traditional means — which usually takes at least an hour or two. Pixel functional patches for this month's update include a few fixes, as well as improved hotword detection for the "Ok Google" command. The Pixel 3a also joins its forebears in picking up its first ever monthly security updates.

Here in the US, Google has had its own mail-in repair center set up for Pixel phones for around eight months. In the rest of the world, though, Google offers nothing of the sort, instead pointing customers to recommended walk-in and mail-in service centers via a support page. These support pages have just been updated, indicating that official mail-in services will soon be offered in a number of European countries.

One of those subtle Android features that Google makes exclusive to Pixel devices is "Now Playing." Introduced with the Pixel 2, it scans for music in the background and shows you what song is playing on the Ambient Display. According to our friends at XDA, location and activity tracking may be coming to Now Playing's history menu soon.

We've covered the Android Enterprise Recommended program a few times in the past — it's a list of phones and tablets that Google recommends for use in companies. All of the devices in the program are running a recent version of Android, receive regular security updates, and work with zero-touch enrollment. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Google Pixel 3a and 3a XL have now joined the party.

In his review of the Pixel 3a yesterday, David mentioned a new Timelapse mode for taking pictures at an interval and creating a video of them. The mode is now rolling out to existing Pixels via an update to the Google Camera app. We've verified that it's there on the Pixel 3 XL, Pixel 2XL, and Pixel 1 and will update with more devices once we test this further.

Google just shook up the smartphone game with the announcement of the Pixel 3a and 3a XL. Suddenly, owning a Pixel with Google's fast updates and excellent cameras is significantly more affordable (and tempting) for AP readers.

It's that time again—Google has dropped the latest Android Pie builds for your Pixel devices. You can get the OTA the old-fashioned way on your phone, but the files are available for direct, immediate download right now.

Google's Pixel series of phones have been Verizon exclusives since they launched all the way back in 2016. For years, customers of other US carriers have had to purchase the phones directly unlocked from Google, and that lack of widespread retail presence has likely had a negative impact. However, today we've spotted indications that Sprint will join T-Mobile in selling Google's Pixels.

It's been interesting watching all of these Pixel 3a/3a XL leaks happen all over the place – though it's hard to beat the insanity that led up to the Pixel 3 reveal last year – but it looks like Best Buy has taken the device's release for granted and jumped the gun a bit, as you can see in the photo above. Oh, boy.

Alphabet — Google's parent company — had its Q1 earnings call yesterday amid its slowest growth in 3 years. A 17% year-on-year revenue increase has some investors concerned and Google CEO Sundar Pichai had to answer some tough questions about the company's hardware prospects. One analyst even went as far as to compare the Pixel phones with Microsoft's unsuccessful smartphone lineup.